Having proved massively popular since it launched (even knocking Candy Crush Saga off of the revenue top spot), Fallout Shelter was meant to give players something to do between now and Fallout 4. Letting Fallout fans control their own vaults, it was up to us to scavenge for resources in the wasteland, recruit new Dwellers and to make sure that all of them were fed and watered.

But, although Bethesda’s free to play mobile app was designed to give us something to pass the time, it’s now a certified time-sink and we can’t get enough of it. And the company plans to give players more things to do with the latest Fallout Shelter update adding a survival mode, a new Fallout 4 character and more.

The Fallout 4 team has been busy lately, having not only revealed the game’s PC specs and console file size as well as the lovely piece of music that is the main Fallout 4 theme. But in addition to all of that, Bethesda has also put together the Fallout 4 S.P.E.C.I.A.L video series, teaching us how to make use of our characters’ stats.

For the past few months, Bethesda has been working hard to promote the upcoming release of Fallout 4. We’ve learnt about the game’s crafting system, we’ve learnt about the S.P.E.C.I.A.L stats and we’ve even been given a taste of the game’s soundtrack. Storyline and quests aside (as Bethesda won’t reveal anything about them before launch), we know plenty about what the game will offer us.

But what we don’t know, is if our machines will be able to handle the game. Will our consoles have enough space and will our PCs have enough RAM and processing power to display Fallout 4 in all of its post-apocalyptic glory? We’ve finally got some answers to those questions as Bethesda has confirmed the minimum and recommend Fallout 4 PC specs, as well as the game’s console file size.

In addition to the game’s various perks, Fallout 4 players will also be able to choose and level up their S.P.E.C.I.A.L stats. Standing for Strength, Perception, Endurance, Charisma, Intelligence, Agility and Luck, your S.P.E.C.I.A.L stats can have a huge impact on the way in which you’re able to explore the game’s Boston-set wasteland and the way you overcome its foes and challenges.

To highlight the benefits (and the disadvantages) of each of the seven S.P.E.C.I.A.L categories, Bethesda has put together a Fallout 4 video series in the style of an old-timey Vault-Tec informational video. So far, Strength, Perception and Endurance have all been detailed and the latest stat to get the info-video treatment is Charisma. Watch the video after the break.

During E3 in June, Bethesda’s Todd Howard took to the stage during Microsoft’s press conference to reveal that Fallout 4 on Xbox One would be compatible with PC-created mods. While Bethesda did go on to confirm that the PS4 version of Fallout 4 would also get mod support, the decision to announce it during the MS presser led some fans to suggest that Fallout 4 Xbox One exclusive content would be on the way.

Specifically, fans had speculated that Xbox players would have access to exclusive DLC. Unfortunately though, that speculation was just that, speculation, and Bethesda’s vice president of PR and marketing, Pete Hines, has now taken to Twitter to shoot the Fallout 4 DLC rumour down.

When Fallout 4 launches in November, players will have to take their ‘S.P.E.C.I.A.L’ stats into close consideration. Standing for Strength, Perception, Endurance, Charisma, Intelligence, Agility, and Luck, these stats are for more than just bragging rights as the stat categories that you choose to improve will have a huge effect on how you go through the game’s Boston-set wasteland.

To explain exactly which stat effects what, Bethesda has put together a Fallout 4 video series, using Vault-Tec’s information guides to explain. Strength and Perception have already been detailed, but the latest video describes Endurance. You can watch it after the jump.

When Fallout 4 launches in November, most of the fun will be had just exploring its vast wasteland, completing all of the missions or even playing all of the game’s DLC. However levelling up your character and choosing their stats is also vital part of the Fallout experience and it can completely change how you tackle certain scenarios.

Bethesda has merged the stats systems in Fallout 4, with the game’s 70 perks being divided into groups of 10 under the seven S.P.E.C.I.A.L (Strength, Perception, Endurance, Charisma, Intelligence, Agility, and Luck). To shed more light on how these stats work, a new Fallout 4 video series will explains the benefits to them and the first of these videos covers Strength.

When Fallout 4 launches next month it will have a ridiculous 400 hours of gameplay – and that’s just the stuff that the game’s producer, Jeff Gardiner, has seen, so there could very well be many more hours of things to do. In addition to shooting radiated creatures in the face (perhaps with the help of V.A.T.S?) you’ll also get to charge into battle with your trusted canine companion at your side and collect materials to build your own base.

When you consider all of Fallout 4‘s main story missions, side quests and (no doubt) all of the Easter eggs that Bethesda has dotted about the place, players certainly won’t be in shortage of things to do. But Bethesda wants to ramp up the entertainment factor even more, having now revealed plans for Fallout 4 DLC as well as “regular” free updates.

When Fallout 3 launched way back when in 2008, one of the most criticised points was the fact that the player character didn’t speak. Many hoped that Bethesda would remedy this with Skyrim in 2011 but no such luck was had; the closest we got to proper speech were the yells of ‘FUS RO DAH!’ etc. thanks to the Dragon Shouts.

Voice acting takes time and money, true, but it’s worth it for the connection that players can have with their character. Thankfully, Fallout 4 will feature voice work and not only that but the entire game actually features more voice recording than Skyrim and Fallout 3 combined.

When Skyrim was first released back in 2011, the fantasy RPG racked up 7 million sales in its first week of availability. Four years is a long time but the game is still massively popular on PC in particular, thanks to its large modding community. On the other hand, Fallout 4 had rumours and speculation surrounding it well before the official announcement, which has made it one of, if not the, most highly anticipated games of the year.

But can the post-apocalyptic RPG sell better than Bethesda’s Fus-Ro-Dah-ing title? Or will it the controversy surrounding its graphics and the suggestions of the game just being Fallout 3 on newer consoles bury it? Bethesda’s vice president of PR and marketing, Pete Hines, has every faith that Fallout 4 can beat Skyrim, as he reveals in a new interview.